Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

re: Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

forest wilson — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 19:19:50 GMT

Smoke detectors and co detectors are the minmum, bare minimum. Sprinklers are the best protection. A smoke detector won't suppress a fire. If the occupant is deaf, or disabled..perhaps in a wheelchair, or fast asleep.....THEY MAY BURN TO DEATH. The only people that oppose fire sprinklers are the Home Builders Association and the Cement Head Association. They would rather have people burn to death than have fire sprinklers installed. Their greed is beyond measure.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Jim — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Lost my home May of 2006. Allstate sent 2 qualified investigators to find the cause and weren't able to. No one was home so no one was hurt. Decided since we hadn't done anything stupid and no one could tell us how it started we wanted a sprinkler system. We installed one in our 3200 sq ft home for $2.00 a sq ft. If you have ever lost everything or had to deal with the insurance company to get your money you would pay 10 times this amount. Now I hope our next claim is not flood but I am able to sleep better.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

backflow guy — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 11:00:00 GMT

I wouldn't want one. Whomever wrote this article is obviously not up on his facts. Fire sytems are way more expensive then his price. Not to mention the annual maintainece of the backflow device. These devices alone can malfuntion and dump alot of water into the house. If I were builing a home right now and the city said I HAD to install a sprinkler system. I wouldn't! I would take my home builing dollar to another commuinity that doesn't require it.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Chris — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

There is a new technology that meets the NFPA 13 (Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems, 2007 Edition) called "No-Burn". It is a spray-applied, non-toxic product that makes wood, drywall, fabric and similar substrates "non-flammable" and "mold resistant" in one application. Cost to treat an entire home, (new construction), is approx. $1.25/sqft and receive insurance and loan discounts.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

James - RE Agent/Landlord/LO/rehabber — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

If you google "residential fire sprinkler system" many sponsored links appear offering to sell systems. Calls to any of those companies I'm sure would have revealed more accurate rates than what FEMA's quoting. I never considered a sprinkler system but I do think they're a good idea and I'll think about putting one in my next house since I usually have to replace drywall ceilings in the rehabs anyway.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

James - RE Agent/Landlord/LO — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

I agree with the other comments that $1.50/sq ft seems very low. The source for the "$1.50 per square foot" quote seems to be from FEMA: http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/citizens/all_citizens/home_fire_prev/sprinklers/ Judging from FEMA's recent activities I don't think I'd use them as a source for *any* information.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

James - RE Agent/Landlord/LO — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Hey Dom K. don't force landlords to install sprinkler systems, it's hard enough to fix the houses up after renters trash them and tracking them down to enforce payment! I don't need a 5k bill to install a sprinkler in a 50 yr old building. We don't need sprinkler systems, we need permanent fire alarms w/ battery backups required while building new homes. That's much cheaper and much more effective. And all alarms need a "disable for 1 hr" button for cooking purposes

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Cham Kahari — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

What type of maintenance is required for a residential sprinkler system and how often? What is the cost? It was unclear to me as to whether the system's intent is to put out a fire or supress it until fire crews arrive. Good editorial.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Dom K. — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Great article! The facts are presented. www.NFSA.org

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Morris — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Mandating sprinkler systems in private dwellings might be a large bite of the apple, why not try mandating it in rental homes where a larger percentage of house fires originate? Try starting with the older ones. The older run down rentals where landlords have scrimped on proper building codes for years and threaten the occupants on a daily basis.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Adam - Builder — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Where there is smoke, there is fire right?? Sprinkler need heat-and where does the heat come from?? This is very simple-forget all the reports that are one sided. Baby steps everyone! Until we have smoke detectors and carbon monoxide dectors in every reccomended area of the home-then lets look at the stats. Many older homes and multi family have no operating smoke detectors or have the batteries stolen for the tv remote. Every life is important, even the poor. If you can't get the basics down?!?

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Ken — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

I have no idea where the author got these numbers for the costs of a residential sprinkler system, but they are way off in this area. I'm in the process of building a new house in an area where the county mandates sprinklers rather than improve fire protection response. The cost for sprinklers in a 3000 square foot house was over $9000! That was for a system that did not require a pressurized supply tank. Competitive bids were even higher.

RE:Home Fire Sprinklers - A Great Idea That Has Not Happened Yet

Adam - Builder — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 11:00:00 GMT

Yes, these statistics are quite scary. In fact the sprinkler fitters lobby hard to get their message out to the governing bodies that mandate such silly codes. Glossy sales slicks of charred teddy bears distributed to slow witted village officials are very convincing. Multi-family, hi-rise - I am all for it. When you hear of a fire, listen closely for the facts - where there operating smoke detectors? any batteries?? Sprinklers cost 20K in avg new home. Smk detector save all, rich & poor at $8.